Wire finishing device



Feb. 9, 1960 H. w. coMPsoN WIRE FINISHING DEVICE Filed April l0, 1958 v/J l 2g ZA/VENTURI v,L1/ La. Dam/:SDN Hg ,tats

2,924,329 WIRE FNSHING DEVICE Application April 1o, 195s, serial No.127,620 2 claims. (c1. 20s-2s) This invention relates to wire drawingand particularly to finishing and cleaning the drawn wire.

In wire drawing machines it is a common practice to use a finishing dieat the exit end of the machine to smooth out minor irregularities fromthe wire surface and at the same time remove most of the lubricant ordrawing compound remaining on the wire after it passes through thedrawing dies. With'the mountings usually used for these iinishing dies,it is difiicult to apply suiiicient lubricant to keep the die cool andto prevent accumulation of metal dust from the wire at the die with theresult that the die tends to wear prematurely. The surface of the wiremay also be scratched and wire breaks may occur during operation.

The object of this invention is a wire finishing device which eliminatesthese difiiculties in the operation of wire drawing machines.

According to the general features of the invention, the iinish die issupported within the housing of the wire drawing machine in the path ofthe wire leaving the machine and in such a manner that both sides of thedie and the sections of wire entering and leaving the die may be floodedwith lubricating or drawing compound to keep the die cool and flush awayall foreign substances particularly the metal dust produced in thedrawing operation.

The wire leaving the die passes through a member extending through themachine wall and having an elongated bore terminating in awear-resisting, restricted passage which accurately aligns the wire inthe direction normal to the face of the die. At an intermediate point inthe bore, means is provided for directing wiping fluid, such ascompressed air, against the wire at an angle to force any lubricant onthe wire back into the machine so that the wire emerging from thepassage is even cleaner and drier than when the iinish die alone isrelied upon to clean it. The remainder of the bore is filled with wearresisting material which, for example, may be a single element or aplurality of ceramic beads but in any case the bore should have aslightly larger diameter than the exit passage so as to prevent the wirefrom vibrating excessively without subjecting the material to constantwear and also to provide clearance around the wire for the flow ofwiping uid.

Other objects and a fuller understanding of the invention may be had byreferring to the following description and claims, taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is an exploded isometric view of a strand of wire passing througha finish die and wiper apparatus embodying the invention.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the apparatus of Fig. l.

In the particular apparatus herein disclosed, the die retainer ismounted within the housing 11 of the wire drawing machine extendingbeyond the inside wall 12 of the machine. Within the die retainer 10 isa finishing die 13 vertically supported by two laterally spaced arcuatemembers 18 and 19. The die 13 engages lateral 2,924,329 Patented Feb. 9,1960 ice die-face engaging surfaces 14--15 on either side of centralrecessed portion 16 defining a passage across the diefaces 14*15 forwire drawing compound 17. In this manner the drawing compound 17 notonly completely lioods the finish die 13 thereby providing it withadequate lubrication and efficient cooling but also iioods thosesections of wire 20 entering and leaving the die 13 enabling all theforeignl substances to be flushed away particularly the metal dustproduced in the drawing operation.

Extending from the lower rear portion of the die-face engaging surfaces14-15, the laterally spaced members 18-19 support an end plate 22 havingan aperture 23 for the wire 20.v The die 13 has restricted freedom ofmovement along the members 18-19 and when the machine `is stopped thusreleasing the tension on the wire, this area provides the necessaryback-ofir space for the die 13.

Mounted on the exterior side of the machine is a wiper 30 which extendsthrough the housing 11 fitting inside the central recessed cavity 31l ofthe die retainer 10. Extending throughout the length yof the wiper is anelongated bore 32 for -receiving a nylon sleeve 33 which in turn has acentral bore lined with a wear resisting substance 34, preferablyceramic beads or the like, to reduce enlargement of the air passage 35by vibrations in the wire 20.

At anintermediate point in the bore 32, an annular chamber 36 formed bya recess in the external surface of the nylon sleeve 33, receives asupply of wiping iiuid, such as compressed air, from an outside source,not shown. An angular aperture 37 is provided from the chamber throughthe nylon sleeve and tubing 38, preferably brass, for passing the wipingfluid to the oncoming wire to force any lubricant on the wire back intothe machine.

The wire leaving the air passage passes throughl a wire drawing nib 40formed of a wear resisting material such as tungsten carbide, mounted inan end plate 41 and having a restricted passage 42, with a diametersmaller than the passage 3S but slightly. larger than the wire 2t),which accurately aligns the wire in the direction normal to the face ofthe die.

In operation, the wirer 20 after passing through a plurality of wiredrawingreducing dies (not shown), travels longitudinally through theaperture 23 of the end plate 22 into the finishing die 13 where thedrawing compound 17 floods the entire die and those sections of the wireentering and leaving the die. As the wire passes through the air passage35, wiping fluid passing through tubing 38 forces any compound 17 on thewire back into the machine resulting in the wire emerging from thepassage even cleaner and drier than when the finish die alone is reliedupon to clean it. l

It is to be understood that the above described arrangement is simplyillustrative of the application of the principles of the invention.Numerous other arrangements may be readily devised by those skilled inthe art which will embody the principles of the invention and fallwithin the spirit and scope thereof.

What is claimed is:

l. In a wire finishing device for wire drawing machines, a die retainerfor supporting a finish die in the path of the wire, having lateraldie-face engaging surfaces, a central recessed portion between thesurfaces l defining a passage across one end of the die for receivingooding compound for cooling the face of the die and cleaning the wireleaving the die.

2. In a wire finishing device for wire drawing machines, a die retainerfor supporting a finish die in the path of the wire, having lateral dieface engaging surfaces, a central recessed portion between the surfacesdefining a passage across one end of the die for receiving lubricantdischarge therethrough, laterally spaced arcu- .ate members extendingfrom the surfaces to support the die for` longitudinal movement thereonand means `at the end of themembers for` limiting the longitudinal move-5 ment of the die.

References Cited in the le of this Vpatent UNITED STATES PATENTS 4Simons.. Apr. 14,` 1942 Bell` Mar. 8, 1955 Bandy Feb. 25, 1958 FOREIGNPATENTS Great Britain" ...1; Nov. 10, 1954

